What size plane for a 7 yr old?

[Robert Hartmann]

I have a soon to be 7 yr old son that loves woodworking. To date it's mostly just drilling holes with a MF No 3 I restored for him and sawing with the Veritas Dovetail and Small Carcass saws I bought for him and his older brother. He's also done some work with my rasps and chisels (with close supervision). I bought a Stanley No 3 and put a Veritas chipbreaker and blade on it, but it seems too big. It could be I don't have a bench his size, but the No 3 seems too big (he's small). He uses my saw bench clamped to one of my benches for most of his work.

I'll be moving back to the states next summer, so I don't want to build a bench right now. Would I be wasting money on a No 1 or 2 since they would have to be new due to the vintage market (Lie Nielsen is my preferred, but a lot of money)? His soon to be 5 yr old sister also loves woodworking, so it would get some more use in the future. Should I just wait until next summer or find another option? I don't want him to lose interest.

I guess another option is let him use my block planes and/or specialty planes (plow plane, edge plane, etc.).

Opinions from those of you with young kids/grandkids would be great, but any are welcome.

thanks,
Rob

[Trevor Goodwin]

Hi Robert,

Block plane is a good idea. If you want new, maybe consider the Veritas low-angle along with the handles that they sell? Certainly not cheap, but it's good quality and something you can use yourself if they lose interest.

Also consider the Woodcraft Woodriver planes, they sell a #1 and #2 for ~$120. I doubt you will find a vintage #1 or #2 cheaper than that.

Some of those vintage wooden planes may also be suitable. You should be able to find a huge variety on auction site. ECE make a plane they nickname "Boy's Plane" (https://www.fine-tools.com/schlichthobel.html), it has a blade width of ~1.5".

Plenty of options!

[Frederick Skelly]

Robert, Trevor is right. I bought a #1 from Woodcraft for $125 when they first came out. It works fine. I dont know if they ship internationally, but suspect they do.

[Prashun Patel]

The veritas low angle block plane has an aux tote you can purchase. The low angle block will serve him for life.

[Trevor Goodwin]

Robert, Trevor is right. I bought a #1 from Woodcraft for $125 when they first came out. It works fine. I dont know if they ship internationally, but suspect they do.

My bad, forgot to look at Robert's locale! This may be Robert's closest source of "Woodriver" planes: http://www.workshopheaven.com/tools/...ng_Planes.html but I can't confirm whether it's the cheapest.

[Frederick Skelly]

The veritas low angle block plane has an aux tote you can purchase. The low angle block will serve him for life.

I forgot about that aux tote. That's another good idea! I think I remember reading that with the aux yote, that block plane is about the size of a #2. Good catch Prashun!

[Nick Stokes]

The block plane is actually hard for my 6 year old to use. He can chamfer an edge, but can't plane a face with it. A #3 is way better for him.

But don't get a junk one. If you want him to use it, it better work great and easily...

[Mike Brady]

[Patrick Chase]

I have a 6 y/o son who's similarly interested. We've tried the WR #1, the Veritas low-angle block plane with aux tote, and an L-N #2. Of those he's done the best with the #1. I think the biggest determining factor is blade width. The #1 is narrower than either of the others and therefore easier to push.

The WR #1 is also easier on Dad's nerves as it's not one of my everyday user planes like the other two, so I don't care as much when he inevitably mishandles it a bit. He has a unique talent for dulling plane blades...

[Eric Schmid]

My girls were a couple years older when they first handled a plane, but they went straight for the mid sized planes; 4,5,6. If the height of the work is appropriate for their size, they don't have much trouble getting their weight behind these planes. It's interesting to watch how naturally they manage the ergonomics with no instruction.

I do most of my work on shop built saw horses with beams clamped to the horses. Mine are torsion beams (lightweight, mobile, cheap to build). Might weight 150 lbs in total and still stable enough to plane. Shop made horses can be made to any height and the beams can be used on any size horses.

I would imagine a high friction surface on the floor would work well with Japanese planes; or any plane on the pull stroke. I've pushed a few western planes on the floor, but not much fun.

[Derek Cohen]

Veritas LA block plane + handle and knob (accessory).

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Robert Hartmann]

My bad, forgot to look at Robert's locale!

Trevor, thanks. Being in the military we use standard US postal, so no worries on shipping.

[Robert Hartmann]

All, thanks for the tip on the Veritas block with tote and knob. It comes out to $190, which seems a bit pricey for a block plane when I already have a LN adjustable mouth. Someone is selling a new LN No 1 for $180, but I'm not sure it would be usable for me where a No 2 may be at some point. A few options, but I guess to ensure he stays encouraged the Veritas may be the best bet. I guess I could always use a second at some point.

Just for a little more background. I'm military and move around, so I try to keep my tools to just what I need.

[steven c newman]

Since you are already over there...ECE makes some nice planes. You can pick them up over there and not have to worry about shipping and such.

[Patrick Chase]

Since you are already over there...ECE makes some nice planes. You can pick them up over there and not have to worry about shipping and such.

You're suggesting that for his own use right? The ECEs tend to have high center of effort and their totes/grips seem optimizd for large-ish hands, so I don't think they'd be workable for the 7 y/o.

As I've said before, the simple hammer-adjusted version of the ECE jointer is a good-quality plane at an unbeatable price.